IELTS Sample Questions: Speaking Task1

In the IELTS Speaking Module, part 1, the examiner will ask personal questions about you, your family, your work, your interest, your education or other familiar topics. A categorized list of such topics and questions is given below. You can use these sample questions to rehearse for the IELTS speaking module, part 1, of the oral interview. Make sure you can speak correctly, clearly, and with ease and confidence in response to each question. Remember to make your answer interesting by providing more than the most basic information. Some of these sample questions appear most of the IELTS exams, so review them well. Make an IELTS speaking preparation notebook and write down the answers of the questions provided here:

YOU

o   Describe yourself.

o   What do you do?

o   What do you do in your leisure time?

o   Where do you see yourself in the next 5 years?

o   Describe your educational background.

o   Describe the place where you come from.

FAMILY

• Describe your family?
• Do you have a large or small family?
• How much time do you spend with your family?
• Do you go outside together?
• What is personal contribution to your family?
• What type of task you do at your home to assist your family members?
• Whom you like most in your family? Why?
• What do you like to do together as a family?
• Do you get along well with your family?
• Are people in your country generally close to their families?
• What types of families are more common in your home town?
• How important the family bonding to you?
• What is your favourite memory with your family members?

WORK

• What do you do?
• What are your responsibilities?
• How many hours do you work each day?
• Do you enjoy your work?
• If you are given a chance to change your work place, would you do that?
• Are you satisfied to work in your current office?
• Is there some other kind of work you would rather do?
• If you could change your job or profession, what would you do?
• Describe the process of getting a job in your country.
• Describe the company or organization you work for.
• What is your position?
• Describe the office where you work.
• What do you like about your job?
• What do you dislike about your job?

EDUCATION

• Describe your education.
• What kind of school did you go to as a child?
• Did you go to a co-educational school?
• What was your favorite subject as a child?
• Who was your favorite teacher?
• What is the education system like in your country?
• Do you think your country has an effective education system?

STUDIES

o    What are you studying now?

o    What is your area of specialization?

o    What was your favourite subject in school?

o    What single aspect you would like to change in your school or university?

o    How the education is helpful to shape a person’s life?

HOMETOWN

• Describe your hometown.
• What’s special about it?
• Where is your hometown located?
• Is it easy to travel around your hometown?
• What is it known for?
• What do people in your town do?
• What are the main industries in your hometown?
• What problems face your hometown?
• What languages are spoken in your hometown?
• What are the advantages of living in your hometown?
• What are some problems faced by your hometown?
• Compare your hometown with another city.
• What are some environmental problems faced by your hometown?
• Is there any tourist attraction in your hometown?
• What is the most interesting part in your hometown?
• What is your favourite place in your hometown?
• How long have you been living there?
• Who else live in your hometown? 

WEATHER

• What’s the weather like in your country?
• Does the weather affect your mood?
• How do rainy days make you feel?
• What’s your favorite season of the year?
• What do you like to do when it’s hot?
• What do you usually do in the winter?
• How many seasons does your country have?
• Have you noticed any changes in weather and atmosphere in the last few years?
• How can you contribute to improve the environment surrounding you?

HOME

• Describe your home.
• What kind of building do you live in?
• How long have you lived there?
• Describe your room.
• Describe what you do when you stay at home?

WEDDING

• Have you ever been to a wedding?
• Whose wedding was it?
• Where was it held?
• What clothes do people wear?
• Describe the wedding ceremony.
• What sort if gifts do people buy for the bridal couple?
• What kind of clothes did the bride and groom wear?
• What is the most common tradition of wedding in your country?

TRAVEL

• Do you like to travel?
• What kind of places have you visited in your life?
• Which place would you really like to visit? Why?
• What’s the best place you’ve ever visited?
• What are some places where you would live to travel in future?
• Describe a place where you have recently been to.

COMPUTERS

• Do you think computers help society?
• Do you think computers are bad for health?
• How do you think computers have changed the world?
• How long have you been using a computer?
• What do you mostly do in a computer?
• Do you use internet?
• How do you interact with your friends?

INTERNET

• Do you use the Internet much during the day?
• What do you usually do on the Internet?
• What are some advantages of the Internet?
• What are some disadvantages?
• Do people in your country use the Internet a lot?
• Do you do any shopping on the Internet?

E-MAIL

• Do you send and receive email regularly?
• Who do you usually communicate with?
• How often do you check your email?
• Do you think writing email has strengthened or weakened people’s writing skills?
• What are some disadvantages of email?

FRIENDS

• Describe a friend.
• How long have you known each other?
• What do usually do together?
• What do you like the most about him / her?
• How often do you see each other?

PLACE

• Describe a place you like to go.
• Why is this place special to you?
• When did you first visit this place?
• Where is this place located?
• What language is spoken here? Do you speak this language?

SMOKING

• What do you feel about smoking in public places?
• Do you think smoking should be banned in people’s homes?

MARRIAGE

• What is the attitude toward marriage in your country?
• Do most young people plan on getting married in your country?
• What are some of the advantages of marriage?
• What are some of the disadvantages?
• Is the divorce rate high in your country?
• Do you think people should be allowed to get divorced?

HOBBIES

• Do you have any hobbies?
• What are some of your hobbies?
• When did you first develop this hobby?
• What are some of the advantages of having a hobby?
• How much time do you spend on your hobby?

FILMS/MOVIES

• Do you enjoy watching movies?
• What’s your favorite film?
• Who are your favorite actors?
• How often do you watch films?

SHOPPING

• Do you enjoy shopping?
• How do you feel about shopping?
• Do you like shopping on the Internet?
• Do you have any favorite stores?
• What don’t you like about shopping?
• Which is the most popular place to shop in your hometown?

SPORTS

• Do you like sports?
• Do you enjoy watching sports?
• Do you enjoy participating in any sports?
• Which sports are most popular in your country?
• What’s your favorite sport/
• When did you first become interested in sports?
• How often do you participate in sports?
• What equipment do you need for your favorite sport?

FOOD

• What are some of your favorite foods?
• What foods are popular in your country?
• What are some of the famous dishes of your country?
• Do you enjoy cooking?

FESTIVAL

• What’s the most important festival in your country?
• How do people celebrate this festival?
• What special food is associated with this festival?
• What special activities are associated with this festival?
• What do you enjoy most about this festival?
• Do you think festivals are important for a society?

TELEVISION

• Do you watch television a lot?
• What do you usually watch on television?
• How many hours of television do you usually watch?
• What are the most popular shows in your country?
• What kind of shows do you like to watch?
• What are some advantages of television?
• What are some of the disadvantages of television?
• What did you last watch on television?
• Why do you think certain TV shows are so popular?

TOURISM

• Which places would you recommend to a visitor to your country?
• Do a lot of tourists visit your country?
• What do they usually do there?
• How has tourism changed your country?
• Is your country expensive for most tourists?
• What are some famous landmarks in your country?

DAILY ROUTINE

• Describe your daily routine.
• What do you usually do?
• What do you do on the weekend?
• What is you typical weekday like?
• Does your life change much from week to week?
• Do you have any free time during the week?

YOUR COUNTRY

• Describe your daily routine.
• What do you usually do?
• What do you do on the weekend?
• What is you typical weekday like?
• Does your life change much from week to week?
• Do you have any free time during the week?

CLOTHES

• What type of clothes do you like to wear?
• What kind of clothes do people in your country usually wear?
• How important is fashion to you?
• What kind of clothes do you dislike?
• Do you think people behave differently in different kinds of clothes?
• What kind of clothes do people wear to work in your country?
• Are clothes expensive in your country?

GOING OUT

• Do you like going out or staying at home?
• What do you like to do when you go out?
• How often do you go out?
• What types of places you prefer to go to?
• Do you like visiting public places?
• Do people in your country go our a lot?
• How and where do people in your country usually socialize?
• What kind of entertainment is popular in your country?

GAMES

• Do you enjoy playing any games?
• What kind of games do you play?
• Do you think adults should play games?
• What do children learn from games?
• What kind of games did you play when you were a child?
• What games are popular in your country today?
• What kinds of games were popular when you were young?
• Do you think mental games like chess are good for you?
• What is the national sport in your country?
• Do you play any outdoor games?

COLOURS

• Do you have a favorite color?
• What are your country’s colors?
• Do you think colors affect our moods?
• Can you learn anything about a person from the colors he / she likes?
• Do you like the same colors now as you did when you were a child?
• Does the colour of someone’s costume reflect his/ her personality?
• What is your favourite colour for dresses you wear? 

MUSIC

• Do you like music?
• What kind of music do you like?
• When do you usually listen to music?
• What kind of music did you like when you were younger?
• What kind of music is popular in your country?
• Do you play any musical instruments?
• Do you wish you could play any musical instruments?
• Which is your favorite instrument?
• Who is your favourite singer?
• What type of song you often listen?
• Do you think listening music helps?
• Who are some famous singers in your country?